Universal foot treadle



Amt-20,1926. 1,581,738 J. J. HIGGINS UNIVERSAL FOOT TREADLE Filed June 6, 1921 I 0c 0 9 UH.

INVENTOR JOHN J. H/G; G/NS ya M ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 20, 1926.

l 5&l,738

UNITE!) STATES PATENT oFFics.

JOI-IN iosnrnniesms, or EAST ORANGE, EW JERSEY, AssIGNoB. TO WESTING- HOUSE LAMP ooMrANY,-A"c0n1 onATIoN or PENNSYLVANIA.

' UNIVERSAL FOOT TREADLE.

Application filed June 6, 1921..

T0 (ZZZ whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, JOHN JosnrH Hie- (uNs, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of East Orange, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Universal Foot Treadles, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to foottr'eadle's for controlling the operation of machines and, more particularly, it relates to adjustable foot-treadles designed to. prevent fatigue incident. to the operation thereof.

An object of the invention is to provide treadle which may be controlled by a swinging leg movement. of the operator the leg pivoting about the knee joint. 7

A further object is to provide a. foottreadle having a plurality of adjustments by means of which the tre'a'dle may be readily and properly adjusted to fit operators of different stature.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description.

Many types of treadle's have been employed for controlling the operation of machines but none of them has been designed to prevent fatigue occurring in the operators leg by reason of the repeated use of the same muscles. One of the'types of tre'adle which has found greatfavor because ofits cheapness of manufacture and simplicity of construction, is one having the treadle pivoted and comprising a foot-rest pivotally mounted upon a support and having one of its ends either directly or indirectly connected by links or otherwise to the mecha nism to be operated. In operating a treadle of that design, the operator usually places her entire foot in the toot-rest. the rest being just large enough to accommodate the foot of the average person. By pressing with the ball of the foot on one portion of the treadle by a pivotal movement about the ankle of the operator the treadle is rocked about its pivot-point and the mechanism to which it 15 connected is their operated through suitable mechanical connections, v

These rests are not" adapted for adjust-- ment. as they are fixed'to the floor or to the framework of the machine and are usually designed for a person of average physique or stature.

Consequently, when either. a personot short stature or one of 1 Serial N or 475,330.

large physique is placed ata machine employing a pivoted treadle, the rest is either too far away or too near which causes the in order to relieve the operator of pain caused by cramping ot' the muscles. One of the reasons such fatigue occurs is that the muscles employed are comparatively small in view of the amount of work required of them, as they are confined to the lower limb. For instance, in rocking the foot about the ankle, when the ball of the foot is raised, the muscles along the front part of the leg, known as the anterior muscles, are employed while, it a reverse movement is desired, the muscles on the; rear of the leg, known as the posterior muscles, come into play. The leverage being small in a pivoted tr'eadle of the character indicated above, greater force must be exerted, and, since the muscles used are comparatively small they become over-- worked and thus readily fatigued. Or, it may be that such fatigue is due to the abnormal manner in which these muscles are used. The normal pivotal action of thet'oot about the ankle when walking is very slight, whereas in rocking the foot about the ankle when operating a toot-treadle ot' the pivoted variety, a much wider range of movement in the foot, and, consequently the muscles, is evident. Tlherefore. the muscles are abnormally contracted and such contraction probably causes the ligaments tying or anchoring the muscles to the leg to become strained, whichv obviously will soon cause the operator to tire. Furthermore, when the musclesrare constantly strained, an irritation is set up in their cellular structure and it may be due to this that the muscles frequently cramp.

Mucln if not all of the suffering heretotore encountered in the use of treadles of the old type has been prevented by use of a treadle which permits a wide rangeot adjustment to accommodate it to physiques varying in a great many respects, and also by providing a treadle which is operated by a natural swinging movement of that part of the leg below the knee, the operator merely using the knee joint as a pivot; about which to treadle, muscles are employed which do not readily tire, as they are of considerably greater length and size. These muscles are principally confined to the upper limb or thigh and those used for swinging the lower limb forwardly are termed the anterior muscles of the thigh while those which bring the lower limb back to its initial position are termed the posterior muscles of the thigh or upper limb. From the physical nature of these muscles, it is observable that, due to their size alone, less fatigue is bound to result. By reason of the employment of muscles of larger size withtheir larger tulcrum lengths, the same amount of force required to move the treadle is distributed over a larger area of muscle, hence the energy of the muscles is taxed to a less extent. Furthermore, the swinging movement imparted to the lower limb is more nearly like that in which the leg moves while walking, therefore, the muscles will operate in a normal manner without excessive strain being thrown on any part of them.

A selected treadle embodying the foregoing advantages is illustrated in the tlCCOlIl. panying drawings wherein Fi 1 is a side elevation of the treadle, and

Fig. 2: is a frontelevation, a connection with a machine, shown diagrammatically, being indicated in each of the views.

The selected treadle which incorporates the desirable features of the present invention preferably comprises a bracket to which a pair of pendent links are pivotally connected, the links supporting a foot-rest djacent their lower ends. The foot-rest may be attached to the links in any suitable manner and, in this instance, it is directly secured to the links, or it may be attached indirectly through a horizontal support, which latter may be adjusted vertically along the links. The foot-rest may be secured to the horizontal support to provide for horizontal adjustment and to also secure it at an angle or obliquely to the support. Connections with the mechanism t-obe operated may be had by means of a bell-crank and a link or other appropriate means.

Referring to the drawings, the treadle shown therein may be supported in any de sired manner but, as illustrated, it is pendently or movably carried by'a' bra ii'nprored xtllii) rigidly fastened to the under side of the framework at of a machine or mechanism 5 adapted to be operated by the treadle.

The parts of a treadle which contribute principally to prevent fat-igue of the open ator are the foot-rest uponwhich the operator places or rests one or both of her r st and the type of support used for carrying the said rest. A form of treadle which h s been found tomeet great favor among the operators is one comprising a pair of pend- 1,5e1,7es

ent links 6 and 7 pivotallysupported at 3 and 9, respectively, in the bracket 3. These tion just described constitutes parallelogram linkage, that is, at any position of the links the figure defined is a parallelogran'i. This construction also maintains the links 6 and 7 parallel to each other but permits relative movement therebetween. The bar 11 may be in the form of a fork, the shank 12 of whichis secured in any desired manner, for ready removal adjacent the lower ends of the links to hold them in spaced relation. A convenient way of removably attaching the support to the links is by means oi": a pair of pivoted latches 18. and 14: carried by the sup-port and engaging circumferentially slotted studs 15 and 16, respectively, snugly fitting a series of openings 10 in the lower ends of the links. The opposite ends of the support extend outwardly beyond the links and have two tines or prongs 17 and 18, having mounted between these tines or prongs, a plate or foota'est 19. The rest may have a cleat 20 fastened to its upper surfaceto engage the arch of the foot and prevent it from slipping along the rest. The rest may be horizontally adjusted in the tines by securing the rest in any of the openings 21 through the instrumentality of bolts 22. The rest may be held in any angular or oblique position of adjustment by iirmly clamping it between the tines.

The object of providing the various ad justments is to better accommodate the footrest to the different physical characteristics found prevalent where a large number of operators is employed. Through the agency of the adjustment provided by openings 10, the foot rest may be raised or lowered as desired and secured so that the distances be:

tween the pivotal points and the top of the foot rest'will approximate the length of the operators legs below the knee joint, so the. the arc through which the platform or rest moves is identical with that through which the foot would move whenswung about the knee joint as a pivot orlulcrum point.

Furthermore, by reason of the horizontal adjustment permitted by the openings 2i,

especially when the operator has a long upper limb length, the platform may be adjusted away from her so as to bring the lower limb into proper position, which may be approximately vertically above the platform, thus providing for greater'easc in operating the treadle.

It may also be found desirable to eiicctthe horizontal adjustment in the openings Qlfor other reasons. F or instance, if the operator prefers, and finds it morecomfortable, to sit close up to the work,-the lower limbs will be positioned farther under the reserves" table, and,in order to operate the treadle with any great degree of comfort while in such position, it is better to provide an adjustment in the treadle to permit its being shifted to a point beneath the knee of the operator than for the operator to attempt to operate it from its normal position. The horizontal adjustment permitted by the openings 21 readily takes care of any such contingency.

By the provision of means for tiltably o1 angularly securing the foot-rcst in the tines 17 and 18, the rest may be adjusted to conform to feetor leg deformities or for more restful positions.

The treadle may be'made ofconsiderable width so that the operator is free to move her foot about to a position or posture most comfortable to her.

It is to be observed that, by reason of the rigid connection between the lower ends of the links, it is possible to maintain the links in parallelism and retain the platform or foot-rest during its movement in a series of planes parallel to that in which it may be initially adjusted. 1

In order to transmit the motion imparted to the links, by movement of the foot treadle, to the mechanism adapted to be operated, a suitable connection is made therewith which preferably comprises a plurality of articulated members. These members usually consist of a bell-crank 23 and a link 24. The bell crank hasits intermediate portion 25 mounted on the pivot pin 9 of the link 7 and has one of its arms 26 extending parallel tothat link and secured to it bya suitable means, such as a bolt 27. The other arm 528 of the bell-crank has a series of openings 29, in one of which may be secured the link 2%. The link 24: usually has a slotted opening 31 in the end connected to the arm of the bell-crank so that a lost-motion connection may be provided. However, the lost motion connection may be dispensed with and an ordinary pivotal connection used. But an advantage in having a lost-motion connection is that the operator may shift the foot-rest in order to secure greater ease of position without disturbing the adjustment or the mechanism to be operated.

V The bell-crank may have its position reversed to that shown in dotted outline 32 in Fig. 1, by reason of which an upward movement may be imparted to the arm 28 of the bell-crank and, consequently, the link 24 and mechanism secured thereto by the same forward or angular movement of the foot-rest.

The proportions of the different articulated members is such that a movement of approximately two inches in the foot-rest will produce a movement of about an eighth of an inch in the operating mechanism.

However, the extent of movement of the slifi 'ea t r s may be readi y reg la ed seats herself before the machine at a distance from the work which will be mostconvenient for her. The support 12 is next ad usted in the openings 10 to make the distance it lies below the pivot points 8 and 9 approximately equal to the length of the operators leg below the knee joint. The foet rest 19 is next ad justed horizontally in the tines 17 and 18 to position it very nearly under the knee joint, at the'time this adjustment is being made, the platform or rest is tilted or obliquely adjusted to a position where it feels most con'rfortable to the operator. With the parts thus adjusted and the operators foot or feet resting on the foot-rest 19, the operator merely swings the lower leg about the knee joint as a pivotal point to'operate the mechanism. This movement is a natural and easy one, employing muscles which do not readily cramp or become fatigued. The motion imparted to the foot rest by this movement, produces a swinging movement in the links 6 and 7 the rest moving through an are having a radius approximating that through which the lower ends of the links move. The bell-crank which is connected to one of the links has its free end raised or lowered, depending upon whether itoccopies the dotted-line position or the fullline position of Fig. l. After the lost motion is taken up between the link 24 and the bell-crank 23, the link is moved and the mechanism to be operated is thus controlled. The foot-rest returns automatically to its initial position under the influence of its potential energy.

lVhile I have illustrated the preferred'embodiment ofthe invention, it is to be understood that many structural changes may be effected therein and it is, therefore, to be understood that the invention is to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

hat is claimed is: I

l. A- foot-treadle comprising a foot-rest, pendent link memberspositioned intermediate the sides of said foot-rest, a forked member for associating said foot-rest with said link members for movement through a given path and means for maintaining the foot-rest in a constant given relative position with respect'to said path.

2. A." foot tr'eadle comprising a foot-rest, a' plurality of linksintermediate the sides of said foot-rest and disposed in a common plane for movably supporting said foot'-1"est, said linksbeing so associated with said rest to maintain the samein a constajnt predetermined relative position with respect to its pathof movement,

r 3. A foot-treadle comprising a foot-rest, a plurality of links disposed intermediate the sides of said rest, a forked member for associating said foot-rest with said link members for movement through a given path and means for adjustably securing said forked member to said links to vary the elevation of the path of travel of said foot rest.

4. A foot-treadle comprising a foot-rest, a plurality of parallel pendent links disposed in a common plane intermediate the sides of said foot-rest and attached thereto and means for adjustably securing said footrest to said links. c

5. foottreadle comprising a foot-rest, a plurality of links disposed inacommon plane and positioned intermediate the sides of saidrest, a forked member forsupporting said rest in angular relation to said link members and means for maintaining said links in parallelism bypermitting relative movement therebetwe'en during opera: tion of said treadleQ f I- v.; i 6. A foot-treadle comprisingaa foot-rest, aplurality 'of'pendent links supportingsaid rest for bodily swinging movement and means'for vertically, horizontallygand angularly a-djustingsaid' rest. 1

7. A foot-treadle comprising a foot-rest, a substantially horizontalsuppfo'rt for said rest, means for horizontally adjusting said rest in said support, pendent links for carrying said support adjacent to their lower ends, said links having' their lower. ends free to move during operation: of said treadle, means'for vertically adjusting said support, in said links'iand means connecting said links to a device adapted to be operated. ,1 I 8..A foot-tre'adle comprising,parallelo gram linkage, a footrest carried 'by said linkage, means for varying the vertical position of the foot-rest in accordance with a distance equal to the maximum difference in the length of the lower leg of different operators, whereby a swinging movement may be imparted to thefoot-rest by a swingmg movement of the leg about the knee as a pivot point and-means, for maintaining the foot rest in'adesirechangular relation to. path of movement thereof n accordance with the variation in the vertical posltion of the foot-rest, c c j 9. Aifoot-treadle comprising-a bracket, a link freely mounted toswingin said brack et, a footaest adjustablycarried at the free end ofsaid link,a bell-crank lever rockably mountedonithe same pivotal point as said linkandhaving one of itsends secured to said link; and means connecting the other end of said lever to a mechanism adapted to be;opera-t ed.-- I 19. A ifoot-treadlefcomprising a foot-rest, a pair of pendent links carrying said rest,

means for maintaining said links in paral lelism upon movement thereof, a bracketfor. pendently and pivotally carrying said links in spaced relation, a bell-crank lever carried by the pivotal point of one of said links to which it is pivotally secured, and means connecting the other arm of said bell-crank to a device adapted to be operated, whereby, upon swinging movement of said footrest, motion will be transmittedto said de v1ce.

foot-treadle comprising a bracket, acpair of spaced parallel links disposed in a common plane and pendently attached to said bracket, a foot-rest carried by said links-and projecting at opposite sides of said links, means for maintaining the parallel relation of said links but permitting a relative movement therebetween during the swinging action of said foot-rest and an oscillatory, member associated with said links for transmitting a force. f

12. A foot-treadle comprising two swing ably supported members disposed in a common p1ane,a footrest associated with said members, said members being disposed in aI-plane intermediate the sides of said footrest andtransverse thereto anda lever arm associated with said members to transmit a forceJf V j 13v. Afoot-treadle comprising a bracket, a pair of spaced parallel links disposed in a common plane pendently mounted on said bracket, a-forked member for maintaining said linksin parallelism during movement, 100 a foot-rest pivoted in said forked member and means for adj ustably holding said footrest in angular position, whereby upon application of force to said foot-rest, swinging movement is imparted to said linksand 105 said rest maintained in parallel "planes during'such movement; v I I 14. A vfoot-ti'eadle having parallel linkage forpermitting its operation by a swinging movement ofa' leg of'an-operator, a- 110 foot-rest associated with said linkage, a forked extension'adapted to position said foot-rest in symmetric relation to said linkage and a, lever arm associated with the treadle and adapted foroscillation by reason of the movement imparted tothe treadle by the'o'perator, I

- '15. A foot-treadle comprising a foot rest, means for 'pendently supporting said rest, means for; securing said restin said means 1 for adjustment vertically, horizontally and obliquely and means for maintaining said foot-rest in parallel planes during movement thereof. j f y I i I 16. A; foot-treadle comprising a reciprocable member a foot-rest, pivoted parallel members for supporting-saidfoot-rest at the free ends. of said members and a-.lever arm associated with said reciprocable member n 1.1aving, pi ot, Po .in 9 M 0 with a pivot point of one of said members said lever arm and one of said parallel members constituting a bell crank to actuate said reeiprocable member.

17. In a foot-treadle operated mechanism, a universal 'foot-treadle comprising a swing ably supported foot-rest, adjustable means for tiltably supporting said rest, means for permitting horizontal adjustment of said rest and means, including parallelogram 10 linkage, connecting said treadle to said mechanism, whereby, upon movement of said foot-rest, said mechanism is operated.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 2nd day of June 15 JOHN JOSEPH HIGGINS. 

